‘The Rover’ #1 on The Playlist’s ’40 Most Anticipated Films’

The temperatures are rising, the coats are going into storage, and the TV spots are getting more prevalent. That’s right, it’s almost time for summer movie season again. The months of May through August are traditionally the biggest in the multiplex calendar, but the lines have become increasingly blurred in recent years—if “Noah” and “Divergent” didn’t kick off blockbuster season, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” certainly did, and that was three weeks ago.

But even so, things are different from the first weekend of May onwards, with at least one blockbuster hitting every week until mid August or so. So, with the release of season opener “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” approaching (which we’ve already seen, and it’s fair to say that we’re not fans of), we thought we’d help you sort the wheat from the chaff by putting together the 40 films we’re most looking forward to over the next few months.

It’s an egalitarian mix of blockbusters and indies, united only by the fact that we’re looking forward to them, or in some cases we’ve already seen them

1. “The Rover”Cast: Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson, Scoot McNairySynopsis: In a war-torn future beset by financial collapse, a man trudges across the Australian desert to locate his stolen car and secure the mysterious cargo found inside.Why It’s Worth Seeing: This is the first film for director David Michôd since his riveting debut “Animal Kingdom.” It’s been described as an existential western, and sees him reteam with Guy Pearce, with heartthrob Robert Pattinson and character actor favorite Scoot McNairy also on board. Michôd’s debut captured the sweeping scope of early Michael Mann mixed with Werner Herzog’s anthropological analysis of human behavior, crafting a debut that was both terrifying and utterly unforgettable. While he’s taking things in a vaguely sci-fi direction here, Michôd has promised that this will be a relatively grounded affair, a crime picture in the outback that could be indicative of a contemporary mashup of “Wake In Fright” (with the idea of an outsider stranded in the outback) and “Mad Max” (with its emphasis on vehicular action). It’s still under wraps beyond some impressive trailers, but more than anything else, we’re hopeful that a Midnight Screening premiere at Cannes bodes for this being something truly impressive. We’re tantalizingly close to finding out.Release Date: June 13th.